Block 10 BB and 13T

Drilling began in Block 10BB in January 2012 at Ngamia-1.[1] On 26 March 2012 Tullow Oil and Africa Oil announced their discovery in Block 10BB, and a second followed in November 2012 in Block 13T at Twiga South-1.[2] These finds exceeded expectations. Further drilling in Block 10BB was conducted in May 2013 on the Etuko prospect, yielding further oil findings, though of a lower quality. In September 2013, a fourth consecutive discovery was made at Ekales.[3] This is significant as Ekales lies directly between Ngamia-1 and Twiga South-1, which bodes well for further oil discoveries. Since 2012 the drilling has yielded a 100 percent success rate, earning the area the name "the string of pearls".[4] Tullow and Africa Oil will drill a further 12 wells over the next year, beginning with the Bahasa and Sala wells, thought to contain 700 million barrels of oil. [5]

It is thought that Blocks 10BB and 13T contain 280 million barrels (MMbbl) and 87 MMbbl of gross contingent oil resources respectively. [6] The estimate for gross gross unrisked prospective resources is 2364 MMbbl for Block 10BB, and 2174 MMbbl for Block 13T.[7] In its half yearly results, Tullow said the test results are a big step towards establishing the commercial viability of Blocks 10BB and 13T.[8]